Josh MacDonald was the fella that I first watched EVIL DEAD, EVILDEAD II, THE THING, THE EXORCIST, THE FLY, ALIENS & REANIMATOR (amongst hundreds of other films) with. We met on the first day of grade 7 (Junior High in Canada) and hit it off right away. Further on in the interview I detail the myriad of comics that the man introduced me to.

In the almost 3 decades that I’ve known writer and actor Josh MacDonald I’ve watched him accomplish many career milestones.  From television appearances, scripts turned into short films, plays that he wrote travelling across North America and acting roles ranging from direct to video fodder all the way to working on James Cameron’s TITANIC for a few months with the Nova Scotia crew.

I’ve never interviewed a writer for this site and who better to start off with than an age-old friend. But first let’s dig into the trailer for the movie in question.

For the 27 years that we’ve known each other you’ve always been a writer. Be it short stories, scripts, plays or episodic television you’ve always been working on something. What drives you to keep at it?

It’s interesting that you define me as a writer, since— for most of our lives— you know that I was also pursuing a career as a performer, acting throughout university and then into the professional world. I’ve never trained in the same way as a writer, and maybe— arguably– that’s part of the thing that actually makes me one: I’ve spent my life being able to generate stories without killing myself to do so; it’s kind of the thing that’s always come naturally, like other people have an aptitude for— I don’t know– playing basketball.

I cannot play basketball— I have no game.

Josh pictured with actor Callum Keith Rennie on the set of FFMW

When you ask what drives me to keep at my writing, I wish I had a more “rags-to-riches” story to share— one where I kept plugging away in the face of adversity— but writing and performing have always paid my bills; I haven’t had a day job since college. The terrifying thing about a life in the arts, though, is that this “luxury” could stop at any time: there’s nothing to say I’m not working at Ultramar a month from now. But, so far, I’ve been able to keep the wolves at bay. As a writer, in particular, I’ve held onto the stubborn belief that if I can punch a piece of work out until I reach the words “the” and “end,” then I’ll be able to find some application for that piece somewhere in the world: a door will open for it, and its journey will continue. I love working in different mediums and different genres, and feel lucky that I’ve been able to do so: sometimes, though, it’s been suggested to me that my creative wanderlust isn’t as clever a Fortune 500 scheme as mono-fixating on one particular career goal, then pursuing it relentlessly. I guess I get distracted by the winding paths.

You were the one who exposed me to Watchmen, Dark Knight Returns, Groo the Wanderer, Frank Miller’s Hard Boiled, Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing. I lay 85% of the blame for of my infatuation with comics at your feet. Why haven’t you ever tackled the medium as a writer? You’ve done damn near everything else.

Ha! I also believe that I introduced you to the good doctor Hunter S. Thompson and to Lester Bangs over the years! Off the top of my head, you introduced me to Howard Chaykin’s American Flagg, to novels by Jim Thompson, James Ellroy, Andrew Vachss; you were the first one to send me movies by Chan-Wook Park— naw man, let’s forget following this particular winding path, it’ll get us both using up way too much cyberspace!

It’s a twofold answer to your question: one part practical, the other part sort of philosophical. Practical: the deadlines in (mainstream) comic-book writing terrify me; I’ve never been the world’s speediest writer, and pumping out scripts for multiple titles every thirty days seems nervous-breakdown-inducingly intense. Philosophical: my whole life, I’ve loved comic books and movies.  I’m grateful to be able to work in the film industry, but— like anything you turn into your actual job— it can kinda kill your joy a bit; I can’t watch movies in the same way that I used to. So keeping my comic reading as a joy, as my escapism… I don’t mind that.

I’m in awe of what guys like Grant Morrison, Brian K Vaughn, Robert Kirkman and Joss Whedon can do, to name just a few— I just like to stand back and watch. It’s also fun to watch respected novelists reveal their love for the medium, lately, jumping in to create work: guys like Jonathan Letham, Michael Chabon, Ian Rankin, etc..

You’ve witnessed the filmed completion of 2 of your screenplays in 2010. That must have been an overwhelming experience after simultaneous multi-year processes. Is this an uncommon occurrence in the film industry?

It’s more a coincidence of timing than anything. I think most writers, producers, directors would tell you that the average development path for a feature film is a five-year trudge. My stage play HALO took about six years to come to screens as FAITH, FRAUD & MINIMUM WAGE, and THE CORRIDOR’s development took about four: the two projects converged during the festival season 2010. There was a point in the summer of 2008 where both projects were still fighting to get their green-lights, and it fell to me to convince the powers-that-be by working up two quick new drafts: I was two weeks out from delivering a second draft reinvention of THE CORRIDOR when a make-or-break, 72-hour polish of HALO was demanded of me: one that would either get the project its full-funding or get it completely shelved. For both projects, the producers’ timeline-schedules have checkpoints along 18 months of road, so you don’t want to miss a single one along the way or the project(s) might perish. That summer was a tough crunch-time — I worried I’d crash both scripts into each other and end up with neither getting made. I didn’t see a lot of sun July-August. After that, though, the convergence eased up for me personally— the projects’ timelines opened up from one another, and lots of other creative minds began to come into both to help carry the load(s).

Can you take us through the quick and dirty process of script to screen? And perhaps point out some differences between the 2 films’ journeys.

Writing FAITH, FRAUD & MINIMUM WAGE was a process of adapting my own work from another medium— my stage-play HALO. That’s an interesting assignment, because you’re trying to radically reinvent something while holding onto its essence. Live theatre and motion pictures seem awfully similar— they’re both story-telling vessels— but the former is a place for dialectic conversation, and the latter is a place where the story’s gotta move as pictures in action. Same thing, completely different– like turning a paper bag inside out.

THE CORRIDOR was a spec script— a horror story– written initially in my spare time away from HALO, as a way of off-gassing. HALO’s protagonist is a teenage girl and the movie is a comedy-drama which is generally brighter of tone (though not as bright as you might think— there’s a deep thread of melancholy in that story) while THE CORRIDOR is about five men whose experiences take them to some really horrific places.  It was kind of a yin-yang process for me, working on them both. My Angels and Demons, as it were.

Finally, there was some irony in the fact that my “teen flick” was the one that ended up being directed by Canadian horror veteran George Mihalka (of the original MY BLOODY VALENTINE). HALO (released as FAITH, FRAUD & MINIMUM WAGE) was a quote-unquote larger budgeted Canadian movie, starring Martha MacIsaac (from SUPERBAD, LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT, GREEK), Callum Keith Rennie (HARD CORE LOGO, BATTLESTAR GALACTICA, CALIFORNICATION), Ricky Mabe (ZACH AND MIRI MAKE A PORNO, THE WILD HUNT, THE TROTSKY) and Andrew Bush (Picnicface, ROLLER TOWN) and, for me, was something of a “big machine”. The process of making THE CORRIDOR felt a bit more homemade: I optioned it to a horror-buff friend and emerging producer named Mike Masters (REEL ZOMBIES, SON OF THE SUNSHINE) who then brought the project to a Nova Scotian partner, Craig Cameron, and brought on director Evan Kelly. These guys are all approximately my own age, and— though we didn’t have the deepest of pockets— we were able to make our movie together, out “on the margins” of things. From the cast and crew onward, THE CORRIDOR felt a bit more D.I.Y., like I was making a movie with my friends over a couple of weekends.

Different experiences, these, but I wouldn’t trade one of them for the other, and I’m proud of both works in different ways.

How nerve-wracking was it to see both of your babies on the big screen last year?

I was too tired to feel a lot of nerves. Frankly— even if the movies get the shit kicked out of them by future critics or audiences— I feel a great deal of satisfaction in finally being able to “tie a knot in those balloons” and release them. It’s good to let them go.

I had the pleasure of reading The Corridor screenplay a few years ago. It instantly brought me back to that nostalgic feeling of Maritime winters and 1980′s horror novels (the good ones by Stephen King and Douglas Clegg). From watching the trailer it looks like they’ve nailed it. How do you feel about it?

That’s right–! You read THE CORRIDOR before I even optioned it!

I think everybody worked so hard on THE CORRIDOR— I’m really proud of them all. Evan’s interest was in deeply developing the character-study aspects of the script, and getting a quiet, contemplative mood out of the first reels of the picture— a New American realism sensibility (like David Gordon Green’s earlier movies, or Kelly Reichert’s). Starting from that honest place, I feel like THE CORRIDOR just gains and gains in intensity along its running time… I’m excited by the pressure cooker which builds up in that cabin in the woods. I think the awesome ensemble work of our five key actors– coupled with the work of Evan and everybody else, from production to post— really gives us a dimensional character piece that distinguishes itself against some of the cannon-fodder characterizations you find in lots of modern genre (and genre sequel) work. That being said, we also try to get our “Canucksploitation” on in the movie’s back half. Lastly, we try to reach for some enigmatic, sci-fi unknowables during the final reel (tipping our homage-hats to 2001, Solaris, Cube, etc)… Basically, from naturalistic beginning to extra-natural ending, we hope we take audiences on a pretty compelling “trip”…

What’s next?

It’s a fun time to be making movies in the Maritimes— I feel like we’re on the cusp of some new “pop entertainment” era here, with the stories we’re getting to tell.  There’s been a lot of knockout movies made here over the years, but they were oftentimes in the (entirely valid) idiom of Don Shebib’s GOIN’ DOWN THE ROAD— movies overtly concerned with our regional identity. My current peer-group simply wants to entertain, as best they can, and they’re starting to make some crazy dents in the mass pop-culture. It started with Mike Clattenburg’s TRAILER PARK BOYS. I story-consulted on comedy troupe Picnicface’s ROLLER TOWN movie last year, and that’s gonna be amazingly funny. My friend Jay Dahl has made a verite-camerawork horror movie called THERE ARE MONSTERS, capitalizing off his insane number of YouTube hits with the short of the same name. Former local movie-reviewer Mark Palermo has made an alliance with Hollywood music-video director  Joseph Kahn, and has fast-tracked his first horror-comedy feature screenplay into existence: keep your eye out for DISTURBANCE later this year (starring Josh Hutcherson and Dane Cook). I’m excited to watch FAITH, FRAUD & MINIMUM WAGE continue into its secondary markets, and I’m really hopeful that we’ll get THE CORRIDOR out into the larger world in the months ahead. Finally, my good friends Jason Eisener, Rob Cotterill and John Davies are already reaching stratospheric levels of success with their homegrown HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN. The movie is a towering piece of uber-entertainment: any exploitation fan is going to lose their shit over this one, and its amazing blend of sociopathic craziness and pure, happy cinema-love…. it’s the best time you’ll have in a movie theatre in a really long time, trust me.

For myself, I want to keep genre-hopping and exploring those side-paths. I have a kid’s urban adventure movie in development— sort of a Ferris-Bueller-meets-Run-Lola-Run, beeline-race movie— called OVER UNDER THROUGH. I’m also writing a horror-comedy about a particularly hellish night spent trapped in a demonically-overrun seafood restaurant, called THE TRAP: here I’m playing with “cheery” horror movies like Poltergeist, Gremlins and Ghostbusters, but then trying to contain my proceedings like in Die Hard or Walter Hill’s Trespass. Finally, I’m hoping to direct my first short later in the year, possibly with some help from Team Hobo and Team Corridor— a summer’s horror-chase exercise simply called GAME.

Or I might be working at Ultramar. Never can tell. Keeps me lean.

NOTES ON THE CORRIDOR
“It brought them all together… and then it tore them all apart
They’ve been the best of buddies for more than a decade, but now they’re changing– getting married, getting promoted, going bald, going insane. During a male-bonding weekend, they will discover a spectral corridor through the woods– an impossible hallway where none should be. It will lead these five men into fear, into betrayal, and into the biggest change of them all: by weekend’s finish… they’ll be dead.
TYLER CRAWLEY (31) needs his friends, now more than ever. Recovering from mental stress in the wake of his mom’s death, Tyler has been counting on a weekend with the guys to bring him back to normal. For Tyler’s sake his old buddies rally themselves, though the “glue” which keeps them together has weakened with the passing of recent years– a natural enough occurrence.
But with the introduction of a single unnatural occurance– the corridor itself– the knots in these male bonds will come loose with a terrifying speed. Both a fantastical passageway to somewhere and a passageway into the mind of the male animal, the corridor will lead Tyler and his friends to the very edge of sanity and beyond…
MacDonald positions the film as living somewhere between the character beats of Barry Levinson’s DINER and the trippy mind-bend of films like Ken Russell’s ALTERED STATES or Vincenzo Natali’s CUBE.”

NOTES ON FAITH, FRAUD & MINIMUM WAGE:

“Casey McMullen never knew what a miracle could do… until she built one.”

When the image of Jesus Christ seems to appear on the donut shop where she works, teenaged Casey’s life is forever changed. Yearning to escape from the hopeless, pious boondock which she calls home, Casey tries to “spin”  this hoax into her own fortune, fame & farewell. If only her estranged father would notice: but that might take a real miracle…

Frustrated with her life, Casey McMullen (Martha MacIsaac) throws a coffee at the wall of the Krowne Donuts where she works… and the splash inadvertently comes to resemble an image of Jesus Christ. Overnight, Casey finds herself becoming the ring-master of a growing faith circus: the parking-lot teems in new customers, 24-7 news media arrive, and the chicken-shack next door cashes in with a “12 Piece Apostle Meal”. Casey’s hoax changes everything: for her strict, fundamental boss (Don Allison), her sweet, believing boyfriend (Ricky Mabe), her “Doubting Thomas” local priest (Andrew Bush), and, most importantly, for her Dad… Haunted by the aftermath of a family tragedy, Casey’s Dad (Callum Keith Rennie) is letting everything around him go: his mortgage payments, his business, everything. Casey’s hoax might be just the “divine intervention” which her Dad needs…but the results are not at all what she expected.

FAITH, FRAUD & MINIMUM WAGE is a modern pop parable: a story of The Father, The Daughter and The Holy Roast.

Further reading and resources:
Josh’s author page at Talon Books who have published two of his plays, HALO and  WHEREVERVILLE in paperback.
The Facebook Page for THE CORRIDOR and official movie site
The Facebook Page for FAITH, FRAUD & MINIMUM WAGE and official movie page

 

“Turn off the T.V. and discover fiction like it used to be”

For my money, one of the most exciting happenings in indie publishing is going down in England via a scorching DIY rock n’ roll operation that calls itself Pulp Press. Their books, pocket-sized blasts of hardcore mayhem meant to resurrect the dime pulp novels of yesteryear, are stripped lean of all excess. At roughly 23,000 words, these little bastards can be burned through in a sitting without any difficulty, and are one hell of a great time. When I was sent a pile of the suckers to review, I thought the best way to kick things off would be to get main man Danny Bowman, who has published two novels of his own in the series writing as Danny Hogan, to explain what Pulp Press is all about. Check it out. . . .

Pulp Press touts itself as producing “fiction like it used to be.” What do you mean by that, and what was the catalyst that made you decide fuck it, I’m going to start putting out books myself?

Absolutely, the whole thing about Pulp Press is making reading entertaining. I think the story game has become spoiled by writers trying to be too damned clever and publishers and booksellers being too snooty and conservative regarding what they take on. Pulp Press is all about bringing the story back to basics and make it an easy read rather than some existential brouhaha.

Pulp Press has already released seven titles in a relatively short time, with quite a flurry out recently. Do you have a schedule you are trying to work to? Do you have a certain goal for how many books you will put out in a given year?

I hope that over time I settle into some kind of schedule. I brought out a flurry of new books to do a kind of showcase at the London Book Fair this year. Why? I don’t rightly know, but I plan to take a bit more slow and steady in the future.

What has the response been like since you started putting these books out?

The response has been a little too good, you know. I am bracing myself for the negativity which I am sure is due to me sooner or later.

What elements do you think define “pulp” fiction?

Entertainment which is cheap, disposable appeals to our good old base instincts like lust and vengeance. Just what I like.

Who are the writers that inspired you to write the kinds of stories you do, as well as the ones you choose to publish?

I grew up on the old Skinhead pulps of Richard Allen but I would say it was Hunter Thompson that got me into writing. I would say though that it is the graphic novelist Garth Ennis who really got me into that economic, darkly humorous and revenge filled style of writing that I want to do. In terms of publishing I want people who can kick out a good old no hold barred story featuring an underdog doing good and coming out winning. They’re my favorite kind of stories.

Any plans for US distribution? What about eBooks?

When I think of ebook I remind myself of the Jack Horner character in the film Boogie Nights and his attitude to video. I can’t stand the idea of the damned things. Especially as reader costs £300 ($500 – $600). I don’t associate with people who have that kind of money to throw away on a gadget and I ain’t setting out to appeal to those kind of people either. And show me a person whose happy getting into a story on their mobile phone and I’ll show you a damned fool. However, I ain’t going to make the same mistake as old Jack did, so let’s just say I’m looking into it.

Will Pulp Press ever release more traditional, 50K+ word titles?

Mate, in this day and age where most people have the attention span of a retard with sunburn I believe that short, punchy and unpretentious novels are the way to go, trust me. But hey, never say never that’s what I say.

One of the best things about the Pulp Press titles is the uniformity of the packaging. Each book looks like a battered old paperback, featuring gritty cover art by Alex Young. How did this aesthetic come about, and what’s the story on this Alex Young guy anyway?

There’s a magazine going about Brighton called Impure and around the time the Grindhouse films came out they did a special to publicize the films and had the cover all manipulated and crusty looking. I asked talented artist, my long time friend and best man at my upcoming wedding Alex Young if he could do that with the cover design and he said, “sure, dude” and look what he done did. Regarding what’s the deal with this Alex Young guy? Check Twitter and Facebook blow up when I pose that very question.

Any plans to release any pulpy stuff with laser guns or boxers or barbarians hacking enemies apart with broadswords? Or do you plan to stick to a more modern, hardboiled style of pulp?

Sci-Fi – definitely, my next project will feature some that, Westerns for sure. Boxing? That’s an interesting one, but probably some MMA or bare-knuckled stuff. Sword and Sorcery kind of stuff I think is pretty much so much its own genre and kind of so removed from the stuff I want to put out, but hey, remember what I always say ‘never say never’.

Anything else in particular you’d like to say about Pulp Press and the books you’re publishing?

Pulp Press is doing a tour of the US in September of this year anybody who wants to meet for a drink and a laugh and maybe buy Pulp Press products off of me directly in Vienna, Virginia; Memphis; New Orleans; Houston; Austin; Truth or Consequences; Tucson; San Diego; Las Vegas and Oklahoma city give me a shout on Twitter.
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In closing, here are reviews of the two Danny Bowman novels for Pulp Press, writing as Danny Hogan.

Killer Tease

In the opening scene of this tight revenge story, burlesque-dancer-with-a-short-fuse Eloise Murphy smashes a glass of booze into the face of a would-be suitor, “grinding until she could feel bone and hear him squeal like the bitch he was,” after watching him attempt to sneak a little something into her drink. She is pulled away before she can finish the douchebag with a well-placed stiletto heel, and promptly loses her job. From there her life is set on a downward spiral that only a double helping of determination – and willingness to commit violence – can pull her out of.

Eloise’s journey takes her through some of the seedier streets of Brighton as she struggles to continue making her way as a dancer pushing thirty. After opening a show for a rock n’ roll band, and learning just how meager the earnings are in that particular world, she is blackmailed into taking a gig at a new club for “discerning gentlemen with very special tastes.” When she turns the tables and escapes the intended result of that gig, the brutal retribution brought against Eloise by her blackmailer would have been the end of most women. But Eloise isn’t like most women; not one to stay down when she’s kicked, her vengeance is swift, violent and deadly.

Killer Tease is a razor-edged tale that sets a no bullshit tone for what this imprint will be all about. Call it a Mission Statement of sorts, if you want; it reads more like a battle cry to me.

The Windowlicker Maker

Danny Hogan’s latest, and the most recent publication from Pulp Press, is another greasy serving of the dish best served cold. The book opens with our first-person narrator, Joe Tatum, down on the sidewalk outside a movie theater, “pissing blood from a big, fuck off stab wound” in his side. Tatum’s natural tendency to respond with violence is overcome when he remembers his promise to his wife, who is at his side, to abandon the criminal life he’d led previously. Instead, they plead with their four assailants to leave them alone, to run off before the cops arrive. Just as sirens are heard in the distance, one of the rogues pulls a pistol and kills Ava, Tatum’s wife, in cold blood.

From there our former hard man sinks into the depths of despair, wallowing in grief but holding to the promise to his late wife to live a peaceful life. He endures another beating at the hands of the same attackers when they recognize him in the neighborhood, but, when a third encounter sees the lives of others being threatened by the actions of the arrogant hoodlums, he finally snaps into action. Tatum’s revenge is swift and calculated, and the book’s body count explodes like the final showdown in a Sam Peckinpah film as he tracks his enemies’ path of destruction back to the source inspiring them.

What I appreciate most about The Windowlicker Maker is that Hogan doesn’t burden the proceedings with unnecessary back story on our narrator. The character’s inner musings hint that he left a career of dark, two-fisted-and-worse deeds, including time behind bars, to devote his life to Ava, but we don’t get the specifics. Instead, we see how capable he is when he finally takes matters into his own hands. This is effective, and keeps the story focused as the proceedings reach their grim, inevitable conclusion. Sharp eyes will notice a cameo appearance by Eloise from Killer Tease; this was also an excellent little touch by Hogan.

As a pocket-sized bundle of raw nerves and energy, The Windowlicker Maker is another fine offering from Pulp Press, and even includes a post-apocalyptic short story by Hogan called A Gun Called Comeuppance. If you’re wondering what a “windowlicker maker” actually is, though, you’ll have to read the book.

For people interested in buying Pulp Press titles, you may visit their Amazon UK store HERE. American distribution is being handled by Murder By the Book in Houston, TX, who offer a fantastic mail order option. Fans of quick, exciting reads that capture the look and feel of an era of fiction long past should make all kinds of haste to pick these titles up.

Writer Rick Remender
Artist: Greg Tocchini
Publisher: Radical Comics
Price: 4.99 US
Mature readers

Originally when I first heard about the premise for this miniseries I was a bit sceptical thinking that Remender was trying to jump on the crime resurgence bandwagon and that it was going to be a huge flop. I’d seen Greg Tocchini’s artwork on some comic over at Marvel but was never impressed with what he’d done. Still though, I was willing to give the book a shot but I’d definitely have to take a look at it first before I plunked down my hard earned cash. A month or two before Book 1 was to be released the owners of my comic store gave me their preview copy as they knew how much of a fan I am of this genre of comics. Nothing had prepared me for what was inside that preview.

The first time that I looked inside the preview I was assaulted by these wild European colors. Tochchini’s artwork was realistic and had improved a thousand fold over what I had seen before. He was mixing mediums coloring the book traditionally while incorporating computer techniques. My jaw dropped. It took me days before I even read the preview as I simply couldn’t stop staring at the artwork. This is something rare for me, at least lately. Then after I finally read the preview I was stoked by Remender’s writing and couldn’t wait for the actual book to ship. It was time to wait.

Even though I was looking out for the book, I still didn’t get to the store in time. It had sold out and it was selling out everywhere. I called my store to see if they could order it for me and one of the owners told me that when he saw how fast It was selling he kept a copy or two for me. Man I don’t remember being that overjoyed over getting a comic.

Holding The last days of American Crime in my hands I couldn’t help but notice how heavy It felt and I glossed over the pages quickly and I saw there was an interview with both Remender and Tocchini In the back along with a sketch section for each character. This was the equivalent of getting a director’s cut of your favourite DVD and it was right out of the gate too. Huge kudos go out to Radical and all of the fine folks responsible. Okay, enough of me gushing over the book, let’s get Into the details.

It’s a few weeks away from the US government’s broadcast of a signal that will render the populace incapable of committing any crimes. At the same time the US is also switching over from cash to electronic payment cards. Needless to say once the news is leaked to the population, rioting, looting commence and people start going bat-shit crazy as a last ditch effort to enjoy themselves before they become mindless drones that tow the line and have no free will of their own. The criminals are trying to get the fuck out of dodge before this signal goes live. Canada has locked down its’ borders, along with Mexico and armed guards will shoot anyone trying to enter the country without valid identification or attempting to sneak in to escape the dreaded “signal”.

Graham Bricke is walking into a slumlord’s wet dream of a building while carrying a can of diesel. As he climbs the stairs to get to where he’s going, he’s offered sex in exchange for that magic hit of H from all sorts of whores promising to fuck you harder than you’ve ever been fucked in your life. We also discover Graham is a recovering addict and he’d love to get high right now but first he needs to take care of a loose end. This loose end is a man tied up in a bathtub while Graham explains why he walked so many blocks to score a can of diesel. Trust me it’s one of those scenes that set the stage for what’s to come in the book perfectly.

Graham then heads over to the local bar where he has to meet a “gardener” to help him pull off a job. While waiting, poor Graham meets one of the hottest femme fatales straight out of film noir’s rich history. He never gets her name before he ends up banging the living fucking hell out of her in the ladies’ bathroom while strangling her at the same time. Yeah. Poor, poor Graham. Only after he finishes does this babe tell him that he just helped her check something off of her “to do list’ What? “Fuck a loser.” Damaged goods baby but goddamn she’s so fuckable and just like a Black Widow she’ll eat you after fucking your brains out.
These two pages above give you a good idea of how much this book will deliver the goods while not falling into the trappings of censorship or pussyfooting around any scene. Once again Radical gets extremely high praise for leaving this scene in the book. Btw, there’s a lot more to this scene than what I’m showing here. If you want to see it go buy the goddamned book already. Enough of me running off on a tangent.

After Graham’s finished he meets the gardener that he advertised for but there’s just one small problem. The femme fatale he just fucked is his gardener’s fiancée. Talk about setting yourself up for disaster right there. The story continues to build to a strong setting for the other 2 books still yet to come and I can’t wait to see how it all plays out. If you find this book, grab it and buy it. You’ll be glad that you did.

This book has the possibility to be as huge as Sin City or 100 Bullets. The movie is already in production with Sam Worthington attached to play Graham Bricke and as a producer, the possibilities are endless.